With so much decorative choice at Christmas, a strategy is needed to

entranceways and on a wall with unobstructed view. Garlands can be placed along

surface where they can be hung vertically or horizontally. And Christmas lights

can be used by itself or with garlands, in shrubs and of course on Christmas

trees.

Using Christmas lights outdoors along the frame of houses and icicle

shaped ones to decorate the roof lines of homes have become very popular. Icicle

lights are just as easy as regular lights to put in place and they create a very

pleasing display for the holiday season. Adding color to these outdoor light

displays can also make houses and the lighting display look more spectacular.

For indoor lighting, candles have become an attractive Christmas

decorative item as they can light up the night in a subdued but beautiful

manner. Candles create a pleasing look when displayed at windows if there are at

least two sets of two or three windows directly above each other, which is in a

vertical pattern. New technologies with candles have also made them safer to

use. There are electrical candles but also battery-operated ones that can be

used safely instead of electrical ones or in places where there aren't any

electrical outlets.

There are also creative ways to use and incorporate various items around

the home to make Christmas decorations. Christmas or holiday ribbons can be used

to make bows that are pinned onto curtains to provide a festive look and a

creative Christmas decoration. Like curtains, houseplants can also be dressed up

for the holidays. Small Christmas ornaments can be gently placed on houseplants

to give porches, patios and front lawns a surprising Christmas decorative look.

Although many people don't use Christmas stockings anymore to stuff

Christmas gifts, they can still be used to create perfect Christmas decorations.

A collection of Christmas stockings can be hung on the mantle, shelf or a wall

with or without anything inside them. They will look just as beautiful as those

that are often seen in stores.

Christmas lights can also be wrapped along with garlands on a banister or

stair railing to add a twinkling Christmas look. Mistletoe can also be hung just

about anywhere with or without Christmas lights. If the tale about mistletoe is

believed however, then it should be hung somewhere with room underneath where

two people can have a friendly holiday kiss or even a hug. Fake snow can also be

sprinkled on garlands, mistletoes and wreaths to further enhance their

appearance with something from the Christmas season.

And to borrow a decorative feature from department stores, several differently

sized boxes can be wrapped, piled in a haphazard manner and placed in a corner

from floor to ceiling to make a gift pillar decoration.

Old Christmas cards can also be used for decoration by cutting pictures from

them to make a collage. The pictures are then glued onto a poster board that can

be framed or hung as is on a wall as Christmas decoration. Even Christmas cookie

cutters can be put to an easy, simple and creative use as a decorative item at

Christmas time. A ribbon can be used to string two or three or even single

cookie cutters that can be placed on the Christmas tree or at a window as

decorative ornaments.

Any home can therefore be decorated to be appealing for Christmas and the

holidays, given the many ideas and ways that Christmas decoration can be done.

Four Surefire Ways to Price Your Decorative Painting Jobs

How can you be sure your client can afford your services before you start the wall painting job?

Keywords:

decorative painting, faux finish, painting, pricing, One Stroke, proposals

Article Body:

Imagine this nightmare scenario…

You’ve spent considerable time and energy putting together what you consider to be a fair proposal for a decorative painting job that you really want to land. You’re finally sitting in front of your client revealing each intricate detail of the finish that you want to create on their walls.

Your client seems excited and eager to get started. At last, you reveal the total estimated cost of the project. Your client is speechless and just gasps at you in wide-eyed astonishment muttering that this is a lot more than she’d hoped.

Are you left scratching your head wondering where you lost your client in your sales pitch? It’s simple. You didn’t get a feel for your client’s budget during your initial consultation.

Most clients won’t reveal their budget to you even if you ask them because they always want to get a lower price. So ultimately you need to know a couple different ways of discovering out how much money your client is willing to spend.

The first way is to come prepared with a sample price list of all the wall finishes you do. This is not a price list, per se, but a general list that breaks down the starting rate for a basic room that measures 12 x 12 feet with 8 foot ceilings.

So for instance, let’s say your starting rate for a colorwash finish on a basic room size of 12 x 12 x 8 is $500. You show your client this price on your list and tell them that this is your starting rate and that you still need to factor in windows, doors, actual measurements of the room. By doing this your client will have some indication of your prices when you do come up with your actual bid amount.

The second way to gauge your client’s budget is by using your samples. After you’ve been decorative painting for awhile you’ll have a good idea how long each finish takes you to accomplish from planning to completion. So if you take the total cost of the finish (including materials and labor costs) and divide by the square footage of the room you’ll come up with an average cost per square foot. Take this amount and write it on the back of the sample of this finish in black marker.

As you’re reviewing your samples with the client you can either casually point out the cost per square foot or let them see it as they’re flipping the pieces over. You can guarantee they’ll be sitting there doing some quick calculations in their head as they’re looking at the square footage cost for each finish.

If you’re worried about whether your bid is too high which is causing your client to now flinch at the price, there are a couple of things you can do to prepare yourself to bid fairly.

First, do your homework in regard to the going hourly or square footage rate in your area. Call around to some other faux finishers or decorative painters to find out what they’re charging. When you’re speaking to them pretend you’re a buyer and ask for their basic rates. Now you’re armed with comparative prices.

Should you bid high or low on a project? I’ve always gone by the rule that if there are a lot of obstacles that will be a nuisance such as high ceilings, lots of windows, children or pets that’ll be running around, or if the client will be difficult to work with, that I can justifiably charge more for the contract.

Sometimes, when you’re first starting out and you’re really hungry for the job you may find yourself bidding low just to land the contract. On the other hand just make sure that you’re not bidding so low that you’re working for minimum wage.

Also, when contractor’s bid low they skew the value of the work within the market unfairly for other decorative painters, which is unfair to the industry as a whole. Remember what they say: “if you get all your bids, you probably are not charging enough”.

As you can see, there’s a lot to consider when you price out a painting job. But with a little preparation you can win more painting contracts and prepare your client for your proposal.